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Former Ghana international Michael Essien has said he hates politics and will never take up any political role in his life.
I hate politics – Michael Essien
According to the ex-midfielder, he prefers to impart knowledge into young footballers on the pitch rather than running affairs from an office.
Essien currently holds both the UEFA A and UEFA Elite Youth A licenses and has been working as an assistant coach at the Danish club Nordsjaelland.
“What I hate in my life is politics. I don’t think I will ever get involved at the political level,” Essien told DW Sport.
“I’m doing my badges because I love being around the players on the pitch, and I stay very close to them, talking to them, giving them advice and stuff like that.
“It makes me happy, rather than sitting in the office or on the phone talking to people.”
Essien immediately undertook coaching badges when he stepped back from professional football after a brief stint with Azerbaijani side Sabail FK in 2020.
In February, he announced on social media that he had acquired the UEFA A and UEFA Elite Youth A licenses.
The former Real Madrid and AC Milan midfielder then joined Danish club Nordsjaelland as one of their first-team assistant coaches.
In an interview in 2021, Essien said he never thought he would become a coach but noted he had a lot to impart on the younger generation of players.
The 40-year-old has, however, declared that he’s “not interested” in becoming the head coach of the Black Stars anytime soon.
He believes, though, that it’s only a matter of time before more professional footballers become coaches after hanging their boots.
“I think it’s just a matter of time before you start seeing our generation of footballers becoming top-level coaches [in Europe],” Essien added.
